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Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!looking!brad
From: brad@looking.UUCP
Newsgroups: comp.lang.c,comp.sys.ibm.pc
Subject: Re: MSC 4.0 SALE (CHEAP)
Message-ID: <1150@looking.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 23-Nov-87 00:01:20 EST
Article-I.D.: looking.1150
Posted: Mon Nov 23 00:01:20 1987
Date-Received: Wed, 25-Nov-87 06:46:32 EST
References: <2380@sfsup.UUCP> <1116@cg-atla.UUCP> <1568@bsu-cs.UUCP>
Reply-To: brad@looking.UUCP (Brad Templeton)
Organization: Looking Glass Software Ltd.
Lines: 48
Xref: utgpu comp.lang.c:5248 comp.sys.ibm.pc:8921

In article <1568@bsu-cs.UUCP> dhesi@bsu-cs.UUCP (Rahul Dhesi) writes:
>
>However, shrink-wrap licenses have no legal validity, therefore there
>was no license to begin with and only copyright law governs use.  If as
>a condition to obtaining a discount on version 5.0 you agreed to
>destroy all copies of version 4.0, you indeed cannot sell it legally.
>If you didn't, I see no reason why you can't sell the old version.

Holy rationalizations Batman!

If you order an upgrade to a piece of software, it is very clear that
you are, of your own free will, paying for an addition to software you
previously paid for, and not a new copy.

By paying for an upgrade you are stating that it *is* an upgrade.
Unless you can claim ignorance of what a software upgrade is expected to be,
this is a contract, even if it isn't written down.

You are both morally and in my opinion, legally bound not to sell what you
have of the previous release.

If you disagree with this, send Microsoft the upgrade fee with a little note
saying, "this payment comes with the understanding that I'm buying a completely
new copy, and that I'm free to do with the old one what I will."  Guess what
they'll say.
>
>Consider buying an encyclopedia.  The publisher encloses a coupon that
>lets you get the next updated edition at a discount.  When you get the
>new edition, can you not sell the old one?  (Hint:  this is a
>rhetorical question.)

A lot of differences here.  The coupon is included with the first encloypedia,
which means that as part of the package, you are purchasing a right to buy
the next edition at a reduced price.  Or it could simply be an incentive on
their part to get previous customers to repeat.

Again, it all depends on the nature of your agreement with the copyright
holder.  In the book case, the publisher probably feels they really are
selling two copies.

In the software case, everybody (including you) knows that the vendor does
not feel it is selling two distinct licences, and you'll have a hard time
convincing people that you believed otherwise.

Software companies work hard to produce updates that (except for Borland) get
sold at a very favourable cost.  Do we have to search for ways to cheat them?
-- 
Brad Templeton, Looking Glass Software Ltd. - Waterloo, Ontario 519/884-7473